The Well

A microscope, Earth, and a colorful arc appear against a starry black space background.
White text reads "The Well" with a circular swirl design behind the text on a light background.
Ideas that inspire a life well-lived

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional?

Life’s biggest questions rarely have simple answers. That is precisely why they continue to occupy the world’s most thoughtful minds. The Well is a place to engage those questions, drawing on insights from science, philosophy, and the humanities.

Created by the John Templeton Foundation in partnership with Big Think, The Well brings together ideas that inspire deeper understanding and a more considered approach to living.

in partnership with

The Templeton Foundation supports interdisciplinary research and catalyzes conversations that inspire awe and wonder.

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Ancient DNA just proved that ‘pure genetics’ don’t exist
The oldest bones in Britain share almost no DNA with anyone alive today. Here’s what that tells us about human history, genetics, and ethnic “homelands."

David Reich

Middle-aged man with gray hair and beard, wearing a light blue sweater over a white shirt, standing against a plain light background, looking at the camera.
Two black-and-white illustrations blur reality: a woman sits on a chair, while another person’s head unexpectedly emerges through a hole in the floor beneath a nearby chair.
Signals from the environment, such as those detected by your sense organs, have no inherent psychological meaning. Your brain creates the meaning.
John Templeton Foundation
Silhouette of a person standing on a field at night, gazing at a clear sky filled with stars and glowing celestial objects, evoking the wonder described by Jim Al-Khalili.
Popular media often frame scientists as having a cold, sterile view of the world. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
John Templeton Foundation
math awe
Mathematics and religion both embody awe-inspiring, eternal truths.
John Templeton Foundation
thinking fast slow
People believe that slow and deliberative thinking is inherently superior to fast and intuitive thinking. The truth is more complicated.
John Templeton Foundation
Many atheists think of themselves as intellectually gifted individuals, guiding humanity on the path of reason. Scientific data shows otherwise.
John Templeton Foundation
teenager myths
Society treats teenagers as if they’re a problem to be solved, but the truth is that we have to prepare them to solve our problems. It’s time that we change the narrative.
John Templeton Foundation
Illustration of a baboon standing on all fours, facing right, with a reddish-brown coat and a pink patch on its hindquarters—an awe-inspiring member of the animal kingdom.
Awe is a powerful force, a fact that is both exciting and terrifying.
John Templeton Foundation